Can Tata Succeed Where Ford Failed With Jaguar?

The plan at Jaguar has been for some time now to move up-market. I, personally, find it somewhat strange that Ford has chosen to sell these brands now. Land Rover has never sold better and Jaguar is attempting a full renaissance. I recognize, however, that Ford has its own set of problems that it must deal with.

I am not privy to the intricacies of their strategy but I would imagine that moving up-market and focusing on their product niche is optimal. Frankly, since a majority of the development work on the next XJ is already done, I don’t see where Tata fits in with their product strategy exactly -except perhaps with Daimler. I will be interesting to see what happens with it. Of course there have been rumors from people within Jaguar pertaining to something not already within their product line.

Jaguar cannot move upmarket as that market is already crowded and Jaguar is already overpriced. The way Tata can make money with the Jaguar brand is by moving Jaguar production to India and by making quality cars there to compete with prices in the range of the Hyundai Genesis price.

RIDICULOUS!

There's absolutely no need for Jaguar to take on Bentley, Rolls, Maybach and the like, which is the only move 'up market' they could possibly make.

Jaguar need only focus on the luxury vehicle segment in which it already resides, and strive for absolute perfection.

Aren't you just hilarious?

The market is crowded where they are. There are a lot of cars between $60K and $80K, there are fewer between $80K and $100K and fewer still between $100K and $120K. Now the XJ has been pitched against 3 different cars which because of the price spread it will not compete against directly in price. Those cars are the CLS (starts around $75K) the Maserati Quattroporte (around $120K: it is most often compared to this car) and the Continental Flying Spur (~$165K). Between the second and the third there is a void. Sure Mercedes has come AMG models in there, but in terms of a complete and normal spread for the price of a model- there really aren't any in that bin.

If there were ever a car company that should move up-market it is Jaguar- at least in the United States. Jaguar's sales are completely inverted- they sell the most of the most expensive model. I don't know for sure if Jaguar is indeed a Veblen good, but what that sales structure shows is that the income of those who purchase the good far exceeds the price of the products. Sometimes it is due to excessively high barriers to purchasing but that really does not work with Jaguar. In other words a large number of those who purchase Jaguars can purchase any one they want- there is no binding income constraint. Jaguar has an opportunity cost to not being within the binding income constraint envelope. They could move up-market produce higher margin cars and and still get a lot of the same people. This is the exact reason they want to move up-market.

DaHarder,

I can guarantee that they will not move that far up-market. Maybe Daimler can be revived in a significant manner to do that at some point in the future, but it most certainly doesn't now. When they say the Bentley Continental they may actually be talking about the Daimler version. Personally, I would like to see Daimler come into its own with unique styling- maybe Tata can do that.

I think that the next top of the line XJ will be in the $115K-$120K. I could be completely wrong- but that is my guess.

"Now the XJ has been pitched against 3 different cars which ..."

I mean the new one- the one we have not seen yet.

Are you serious??? You want a respectable brand like Jaguar to play in the same sandbox as shit like Hyundai? I would rather see them folded completely than to do that. Shame on you for even mentioning Hyundai in the same sentence with Jaguar.

I bet they can..TATA is a huge company in India...and they are looking to prove them self on an international scale

They'll have to have the "Midas Touch" to bring Jaguar back to a competetive levely.

CD I thought I started a petition to ban ENNorak from the site for stupidity. What ever happened with that?

I don't remember.

Hey thinking on this Veblen good thing, about what percentage of buyers finance their Jaguar do you think?

This was a very desperate move by Ford, who is doing whatever it takes to avoid bankruptcy. Only way Tata can succeed with Jaguar and make money is by cost cutting and outsourcing most work to India and selling their new Jaguars to the elite of the growing and overpopulated developing world. No one in the west with half a brain would ever buy an Indian made Jaguar over any German or Japanese luxury brand.

Just when Jaguar has a nice product comes this whole TATA takeover.... I dont like it AT ALL. India should not be making cars. The austentious British brand will definitely never be looked at the same way again. At least by some.

As a Jaguar owner, I am particularly sensitive to the issue of an Indian built Jaguar (incidentally I do not find Jaguar's ostentatious) The thing is that thee is no evidence as of yet that Tata will be building them.

Tata won't be building Jaguars- Jaguar will be building Jaguars. Ford didn't build Jags either. They owned the company- there is a difference. At least, that is what all of the present evidence suggests. One of the concerns has been the English workforce which essentially won't change.

I don't think Jags are ostentatious - and I think too move upmarket is a good idea.
Already the XF doesn't have a cheap base model like it's Teutonic rivals - no cloth seats to be found.

I don't think they should move very far. Maserati has the sweet spot at the moment... there cars aren't ridiculously expensive like Rollers or Bentleys, but at the same time they have a certain mystery and exclusivity about them that Mercedes-Benz, Audi, BMW, Lexus, Porsche and yes, Jaguar, cannot match. That is where Jaguar should be. A Quattroporte competitor sounds nice... but they have to build a car that's as sexy as the Quattroporte first!

*Their. I am having a lot of typing errors lately.

The Quattroporte is the car which the new XJ is compared to the most in print. Jaguar themselves have said that it is akin to "a better developed Quattroporte." I do know that the stance of the car is supposed to be more extreme than that of the QP. Jaguar magazine has said that "The XJ’s tumblehome - the width of the upper greenhouse/roof area compared to the width of the lower body - will be dramatic, even more extreme than the Quattroporte." It is also said to have a glass roof. The next XJ will also be longer than the QP.

All I know is that I want it to retain the droopy English rear end- and I don't want that break in rear window set to be like the XF- I wish for it to be more akin to the XK.

Incidentally, we are supposed to see the C-XJ at the October Paris Auto Salon.

Unlike in the west people in India reproduce like rats, and are not very innovative. That's why they had to buy Jaguar instead of building up their own luxury brand. India has never contributed anything to the automotive industry and has no high-tech manufacturing and quality craftsmanship required to compete in the luxury market today. India which is similar in size to China dose not produce any high-tech products like laptops, plasma/LCD TVs, cell phones etc.....They only produce lo-tech merchandise like clothes, laptop caring bags and cheap cell phone cases for example.

well said 1000rrRider! I quite agree with your comments.

Yeah moving upmarket and concentrating on building only quality products in the only thing that will ensure sales, because if the product has quality, power, and reliability, there is absolutely no way why it wont sell, and off course you need to make people aware of the potenatials of the product through well organized advertisements. And i think Jaguar has frankly done exactly that with the XK and the new XF. They should just kill the X type, and should only concentrate on producing fine quality products, and such products are bound to sell. The XK sale proves that point quite well.

Jaguar should not go to TATA. That's it what i want to say.

BTW i read in todays's local magazine that TATA recentley lauched the Cheapest car in the World, Tata Nano.

Powered by 660CC engine. It costs 100K indian rupees. (USD approx 2K).

That's good job TATA.

JUGNU

and this proves my point why Jaguar should not go to TATA. Imagine Jaguar made by people who makes the cheapest car(s) in the world.
and probably it will be cheapest in everything, Quality, reliability, durability..etc

that's the complete oppsoite to what companies dream for. They want to be associated with companies who are widely respected, makes best or most expensive products or are successful.

Bentley VW, Rolls BMW and Jaguar TATA OMG.

I think VW should buy them. They already own some of the top of the line companies. They might improve them and return them to profits.

JUGNU

and whta's up with u fastonekiller.

XF is one of the most beautiful sedan available. It's extremely desirable. and it's interior is the best i have seen in a while. It's definately better than my favourite interiors Bentley, Lexus and Volvo.

To me it's the best in the class except the headlights could have been better that's it. Love it.

JUGNU

fastone killer is a moron. Or probably he has a bad sense of taste.